How’s this for a glimpse of the future? For the next eight years, the labor market will continue to shrink, and your company will increasingly come to resemble a temporary employment agency. Bright, restless recruits who believe they have nothing more to learn from your firm will move on to other employers; your seasoned managers
At the end of its last term, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two rulings that offer insight about employer liability for sexual harassment. The decisions (Faragher v. City of Boca Raton, No. 97-282, and Burlington Industries Inc. v. Ellerth, No. 97-569) were both hailed and condemned-hailed for establishing new rules for such cases, and condemned
Recently the Supreme Court issued two decisions that attracted a great deal of attention. These decisions will make it easier for employees to sue and will provide them with an incentive to do so. However, they also give employers insight into ways to avoid harassment or end it before it becomes an actionable offense.
Interviewers come in many styles, shapes, and sizes. They may be trained professionals or rank beginners. They may be pleasant and encouraging or rude and opinionated.
Job Search Tips Searching for a job in today’s environment can be challenging at best. Most people complete their education and end up working in a completely unrelated field. The fact is that we have to work to pay bills and support families. This means that sometimes we take jobs we don’t necessarily want to
Whether you are looking to change jobs or you are entering the job market for the first time the process can be overwhelming. The key to a “successful job hunt” is targeting the right employer. This simply means that, like buying a new shirt, if it doesn’t fit …don’t wear it! In a limited job
Q: Two of my employees seem to have absolutely no interest in doing a good job. They arrive late, ignore deadlines, and drag out every task to avoid additional work. If I bring this up, they threaten to call in sick and stay out for several days. Because we work for a large retail chain,
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Many American workers don’t really leave work. Emails, phone texts, pager alerts and phone calls pepper what once was personal time. And that’s not including on-call shifts or beeper time, which require workers to be ready and able to work at a moment’s notice. When is it time to call
The Winter Olympics are well under way and there’s one story line that just won’t go away: many people feel that Sochi hasn’t lived up to expectations. From high threats of terrorism to homeless canines running amuck, unfinished living accommodations to egregious human rights propaganda, the negativity surrounding this year’s Olympic host has been
Q. I am 64 and work full time. I plan to claim Social Security benefits at 70. My ex-husband is 66 and we were married for 19 years. I remarried at 61. Am I entitled to some of my ex-husband’s benefits? Am I eligible for my current husband’s? Can I claim spousal benefits on my
SEATTLE — Inside a former Northern Trust bank vault in downtown Seattle, there now stand several rows of posh, wooden lockers. Just outside the heavy vault door is a series of curtained booths, a sleek, fully stocked bar and rows of small desks set up to look like a cafe. A blend of restaurant, bar
Q: In the family business where I work, the owner and his son have very different perspectives. The owner is always looking for growth opportunities, while “Stan” tends to focus on maintaining the status quo. Although I have good relationships with both of them, the owner and I tend to think more alike. Whenever I
WASHINGTON — Employers shrugged off worries about the U.S. economy downshifting, adding a whopping 271,000 non-farm jobs in October and raising worker pay in the process. The unemployment rate in October dipped slightly to 5 percent, and measures of stress in the job market continued improving, the Labor Department reported Friday in a solid monthly
WASHINGTON — A burst of hiring last month accompanied by strong wage gains suggests that the U.S. labor market remains solid and increases the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will make its first interest rate hike in nearly a decade next month. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday that employers across a broad spectrum
SEATTLE — The old heritage Boeing Co. is dead, and Seattle-area employees are struggling to come to terms with the colder corporation in its place, according to candid interviews in a new book. “Emerging from Turbulence: Boeing and Stories of the American Workplace Today” explores the attitudes of Boeing veterans, for whom the merger with
WASHINGTON — Private-sector job growth slowed slightly in October but still posted a solid gain of about 182,000 net new positions, payroll firm Automatic Data Processing Inc. said Wednesday. The figure was down from 190,000 net new jobs created the previous month. ADP initially had estimated job gains of 200,000 in September but revised that
Wondering just how accurate your personality test results are? Dr. Kerry Schofield explains more about the science behind personality types. Humans like classifications and categories. It’s a feature of the way our brains function – we have limited processing capacity, so we group things together in order to simplify information. This has a lot of problems associated
WASHINGTON — The U.S. is turning to another asset in addition to its strategic oil reserve to help pay for a budget deal: Congress and the Obama administration want to sell federal airwaves after an auction earlier this year set records. The Federal Communications Commission needs to begin an auction of 30 megahertz of airwaves
PITTSBURGH — As long as there have been work-issued mobile devices, businesses have turned a blind eye — or an inconsistent one — to a thorny issue underlying the unspoken expectation for employees with those phones and laptops: always be on call. Now federal labor regulators may revise a standard governing what amount of time
When I was eight years old, I told my grandmother that I wanted to be a baseball player when I grew up. Without missing a beat, she immediately slapped me, and told me that was a terrible idea. My grandfather – her ex-husband – had tried that same career path, his drive to make it
